Christmas Farewell
by illutia mist
Summary: She had grown distant from him lately. When he found out the reason, he wasn't able to stop her. Could it be their time to say goodbye to each other?


**Hi, good readers. This is the last sequel of A Miracle Night.**

**Yeah. You heard it right. The last sequel. I started it at Christmas and I will end it at Christmas too. So, why don't you enjoy it now? Happy reading! XD**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Gakuen Alice and its characters. I do own the creepy plot. Lol! XD**

It's just a small gesture.

Pinky fingers joined under the table, knees brushed each other, or exchange glances and secret smiles at each other.

But he couldn't move his attention away from that simple, yet affectionate motion. He could hear faint voice of someone talk in his ears, and it's not enough to bring him out of his thought. The view he saw from the corner of his eye bothered him more.

He had wondered how the romantic scene in front of him could make his heart tighten. A feeling he ever felt before surfaced. Only, it's a bit different now.

The heartwarming scene made him jealous.

Yes. Jealous.

He peered to the rows in front of him, and his cerulean eyes immediately caught the back figure of a certain raven-haired girl. He unconsciously scrutinized her with his eyes. The lass had changed a bit for past nine months since he admitted his feeling to her. Her raven short hair had grown longer; the length had reached her neck. Her back also looked a bit smaller than he remembered.

Then it struck him.

It had been three weeks since the last time he saw her.

How could he be so oblivious? The last time he saw her was when they had Physical Education class at Friday three weeks ago. After that, he never saw her wandering at the corridor or school field. She disappeared just like that after the class had been over.

He wondered what his girlfriend was doing lately that she was barely seen around the school when the lesson ended. He also wondered if their relationship would loosen and they would end up breaking up one day. Not like his fire caster best friend and the brunette, he and his girlfriend barely spent time together, and even if they did, their date was far from romantic. They were so close to breaking up.

Ruka heaved a heavy sigh quietly, thinking of the worst possibility that might come out one day if this condition kept going on. He must do something before it really happened to both of them. He could take her out for dinner and spend some quality time with her once in a while. It would be a good effort to keep their relationship safe.

That reminded him of the Christmas day which would come soon. He knew the academy would hold a Christmas party on December 24th like what they usually had every year. That would be a good occasion for them to spend their time together. Maybe there would also be romance between them. It was perfect.

The corner of his lips twitched up a bit, forming a sideways smile on his face. It looked like this year's Christmas would be interesting than another Christmas he had ever experienced before. He couldn't wait for that day to come.

Maybe he could talk to his girlfriend about this when the class was over.

-x-

He huffed in annoyance. His eyebrows wrinkled when his eyes saw a pile of papers in his hands. His steps weren't as gentle as usual, and if you heard it carefully, he was half-stomping through the corridor.

It's not a part of his plan at all.

If he remembered clearly, he planned to approach his girlfriend after the class was over and make a small conversation about what she had done lately and what plan she had for Christmas. Yeah, that was his plan. Not this.

He glared at the papers in his hands and sighed in defeat because he could do nothing to get rid of it. He wondered if Fate knew what he had planned and made the teacher give him assignment to bring the pile of papers (which the contents were unknown) to the teacher's lounge. If it's right, then maybe Fate didn't want him to meet his girlfriend? But why?

He sighed exasperatedly, realizing there was no use to blame Fate for this matter. Maybe he just had no luck that day.

His stomp turned to casual step as time passed by and he got over his irritation. His step stopped when he arrived at a certain door. He looked up and saw a plat hanging above him. 'Teacher's Lounge' was written in black color on the gold sparkling surface. He looked down at the papers, thinking how he would knock the door with these things in his hands, until he heard a faint conversation from inside the room.

"-take the offer?"

"Yes, the departure is on December 25th."

"I see…"

"That's why we should make the Christmas party memorable."

"Yeah, it would be a great farewell party too."

Ruka blinked as he heard two male voices keep talking inside the room. 'Farewell party?' he thought curiously. 'For whom?'

He stared at the door for a while, before he hesitantly moved his ear closer to the wooden material. His hands were holding the pile of papers securely as he continued eavesdropping.

"How about a farewell speech at the party?"

A soft laugh was heard before the second person said, "Why don't you ask the lucky person?"

"Hm…I'll try. High possibility of being rejected though…"

"Imai, huh? Well, good luck."

"Yeah, wish me luck."

Ruka froze. He had accidentally heard something he shouldn't have heard, or rather, he didn't want to hear. Before he fell into his deep thought, a sound of footsteps could be heard approaching the door. He shook his head then silently ran away from the door, turned at the nearest corner, and stood there as he heard the sound of door opened.

His heart was beating fast as he registered the newest information he had just gotten. Soft pants escaped from his parted lips. His hands trembled, shaking the pile of papers in his hand a bit. His eyes stayed widened, not blinking at all as he recalled what had happened minutes ago. He couldn't believe what he had just heard.

'Hotaru? Farewell party?' he thought, still couldn't get over his shock. 'She never told me about this!'

He could feel his legs almost giving up. He leaned his back on the wall for support. His widened eyes turned to its normal size as he felt anger and sadness building inside him. He was angry because she didn't tell him about this important news. He was sad because she would go away in short time.

He leaned his head on the wall not too gently, making a soft thud sound when his head came in contact with the hard surface. He closed his eyes in frustration, suddenly feeling tiredness consuming him.

He should see her.

He should see her and clarify this matter. If not, he wouldn't be able to sleep tonight.

And this was how his escapade in searching his girlfriend started…

-x-

First day…

After sending the pile of papers to the teacher's lounge safely, he quickly moved his feet back to the classroom. But when he arrived there, the room was empty. He leaned his side on the door frame while panted softly, silently encouraging himself not to surrender that easily. He could try again tomorrow, though he couldn't sleep for real that night.

Second day…

He paid his full attention to her while his ears were in alert every time, in case if the bell rang. A few minutes later, the bell rang. The teacher dismissed them, not forgetting to give them homework for winter holiday.

All students packed their things and started to leave the classroom. He waited patiently until the last student walked out from the classroom, leaving just him, his girlfriend and the teacher. When he saw his girlfriend standing up and walking to the door, he quickly grabbed his bag and stood up, attempting to catch up with her.

Unfortunately, the teacher spotted him and asked him to help her bring a stack of books to the teacher's lounge. Ruka inwardly groaned in annoyance. Reluctantly, he approached teacher's desk and helped her.

Third day…

He waited for her in front of her dorm room, standing still and knocking on her door a few times, wishing she would open the door and ask him what business he had that he had to disturb her at that time. But after waiting for like hours, he heaved a submitted sigh. There's no sign she was there.

Fourth day…

He peeked into her laboratory after asking for a spare key from Takahashi the robot. Her inventions were sprawling everywhere, neglected. He concluded that she wasn't there too. He had no choice but to go back to his own dorm room to take a rest. There was still tomorrow.

Fifth day…

He walked into the cafeteria with his raven-haired best friend. The moment they stepped into the crowded room, his cerulean eyes gazed around, hoping to find a certain raven-haired girl inside there. He caught a brunette waving at them and they proceeded their way to the table where she sat down.

When he arrived there, he saw the rest of their gang sitting there as well, but he didn't saw one person he had been searching for. He sighed and took a seat beside the mind reader, pretending to pay attention to the topic they were talking about at that time.

His mind was somewhere else.

Sixth day…

He walked aimlessly through the corridor, opening each class that he passed. Frustration was written all over his face as he pushed the last door at the end of corridor harshly. Still, there was no sign of Hotaru there.

He slammed his forehead on the door exasperatingly. Never had he felt so distressed and incomplete like this. He had missed her so much, and the empty result he got after he searched her this whole week made him frustrated more than ever.

Christmas had almost approached them, which meant he had only two days to be with her. But why oh why it's so difficult to see her? Couldn't Fate give him mercy?

Seventh day…

"Man, what's with that face?"

He turned to see a certain mind reader staring at him with a surprised expression on his face. Ruka didn't respond. He turned his face away from the mind reader again and stared to nowhere in front of him. A tired sigh came out from his lips as he let himself drown in his oh-so-messy thought again.

They were at the school field right now, sitting on the bench while watching the sun set down in the west. The class had been over and he had nothing to do since Natsume was on his mission once again. He also couldn't find his girlfriend's whereabouts. Yeah, it had been a week and he still couldn't find where she was after the class was over. He had tried to check her dorm room, as well as her laboratory. He also had tried to chase her when the class was over, but she would always disappear when she was already out of class.

He hadn't been able to sleep for nights, thinking about his raven-haired girlfriend's plan to go to somewhere he didn't know. Sometimes, he just managed to sleep for two or three hours then he would wake up again and his eyes would stay opened.

Kokoro Yome raised an eyebrow at the animal-lover's strange behavior. Never in his life had he seen the blonde-haired lad acting like this. It looked like he lost his soul. "You look like you were just approached by a scary ghost," he commented as he pointed his index finger to Ruka's face.

Unfortunately, the blonde-haired lad didn't make any response at all to his comment, not even a small move. He was too drowning in his thought to hear Koko's opinion.

The mind reader got curious, and like what he would usually do, he used his mind reading alice to the pondering lad. He concentrated on his alice and went silent for a few moments. The animal-lover didn't mind the silence though. Instead, he was happy that the mind reader was finally quiet.

"WHAT?!" Koko shouted all of a sudden, making the blonde-haired lad jolt from his chair and land on his bottom hardly.

He looked up and shot the mind reader an annoyed glare as he stood up and dusted his pants from dirt. "Why in the hell did you shout all of a sudden?" he mumbled in irritation and sat down on the bench again.

Koko blinked a few times with his mouth opened. After a few moments, he leaned his face closer to Ruka and asked in a low voice, "Are you sure Imai would go away from this academy on Christmas?"

Ruka rolled his eyes away from the boy beside him, knowing he just read his mind again. He heaved a sigh before he answered, "I don't know. That's why I want to find Hotaru to clarify that, but I couldn't find her everywhere after the class has been over…"

"Weird…I didn't hear anything about that from Imai's mind in the class," he murmured and swallowed nervously when he caught the animal-lover's glare at his accidental confession. "Do you think she want to hide it from all of us? Or maybe she doesn't think it's a big deal to tell?" he quickly added to avert Ruka's deadly stare.

"It's not a big deal?" the blonde-haired asked furiously. "It IS a big deal!"

"Yes, I know. It's a big deal to you," Koko remarked as he held up both of his hands in defense, "and also to Mikan, Anna, Nonoko, Yuu, and her other friends, including me of course."

Ruka fumed angrily and ran his hand through his silky blonde hair. He thought the mind reader might be right. His cold girlfriend might think it's not a big deal that she had to tell them about it. He didn't think he would stay calm and smile at her, saying it would be fine even though she told him about it. He might be as surprised as the first time he found out the shocking news and get frustrated like what he had been now. He might even tell her not to go.

Then it hit him.

What if she knew he would react like this? What if she knew he might tell her to stay? If that was right, then she had a good reason why she didn't tell them anything about her departure.

He sighed frustratingly. Why hadn't he noticed sooner? The distance she created these days, the way she disappeared to nowhere after the class was over; all of them were because she would go away from the academy. She would go to the place he couldn't reach for God-knows-how-long while he was stuck in this prison.

Koko made a sympathetic expression on his face. He knew what the animal-lover felt at that time, thanks to his mind reading alice. But even without his alice, he still would understand how sad the blonde-haired boy was. He was a boy too, so he knew how it felt to be left by the girl he loved.

Patting Ruka's shoulder gently, the mind reader said, "Why don't you talk to her?"

Ruka lifted his head and looked at him with 'are-you-kidding?' stare.

"Do you forget? There will be Christmas party tomorrow night." Koko grinned, proud of what-he-thought his great idea.

Another impassive stare was given to him by the blonde-haired boy. Koko thought his mind was flying somewhere again, and he was about to hit him when he saw a small smile forming on the animal-lover's face. He smiled back at him, encouraging him more.

Ruka turned his attention to the sun which had been set in the west fully. His smile widened in determination as he nodded and said, "I'll talk to her tomorrow night."

The mind reader gave him his trademark grin. "Good luck."

-x-

The party was a bit extravagant than usual. There were more lightings and colorful decorations hanging on the trees and stage which was specially made for Christmas show. The foods were being arranged on a long table. A big Christmas tree was standing straightly in the center of the dancing floor, already being decorated with a few tiny Christmas ornaments. Students and teachers had crowded the place at 7 pm. The party would start soon.

Ruka walked into the crowd nervously, accompanied by Koko who had a goofy grin on his face. His eyes were searching for a certain raven-haired girl while girls were squealing when they saw him there. He swore he even heard a few girls shouting that he walked to their directions. 'Fan girls,' he said inwardly as he rolled his eyes. He realized the academy didn't give any specification of the costume they should wear for the party. He had an idea why it was. It could be because tonight party was a special one. Someone would leave them tomorrow.

"Ruka-pyon! Over here!"

Ruka, upon hearing his name being called, snapped out of his thought. He turned his head to the voice's direction and saw a brunette waving at him enthusiastically. He sighed and smiled. It was just so typical of her. He heard the mind reader chuckle. "She's as funny as ever, huh?" Koko commented, still couldn't stop chuckling at Mikan's childish act. He then sighed and murmured, "I don't want to see her sad when she hears about Imai's departure…"

Ruka nodded in agreement. "Let's not spoil her happiness tonight," he suggested. "Maybe Hotaru will tell her later…"

Koko just smiled in reply and both of them walked to the brunette's direction.

As they walked closer to the brunette, their eyes spotted the fire caster standing beside her with a drink in his hand. He nodded at them and they smiled in return. When they were just a few meters from the couple, the brunette ran approaching them with a big smile on her face. In her hands were two medium-sized boxes. No wonder, it must be presents for them. The brunette always gave them Christmas gifts every year.

"Whoa, chill down, girl," Koko said with a humorous grin playing on his lips. "We'll be killed by your boyfriend if something happens to you."

Mikan stopped in front of them and shoved the boxes in her hands to them. One person, one box. "Natsume isn't that horrible, Koko," she said while huffing in annoyance, her hands were on her hips.

The mind reader chuckled. "I know. I'm just kidding."

She huffed again before the frown was replaced by a smile in the next second. "Well, Merry Christmas, guys!" she chirped, throwing her arms in the air.

"Yeah, yeah, Merry Christmas too." Koko patted her head gently as he grinned.

From the corner of his eye, Ruka saw Natsume approaching them. His lips formed into a smile as he greeted him, "Hello, Natsume. Merry Christmas."

"Yeah," was the fire caster's simple reply. "…You're not with Imai?"

The animal-lover shook his head, though he was also a bit disappointed inside. "No. I couldn't find her these days."

"Hotaru indeed was busy these days," Mikan butted in, smiling brightly at him. "But don't worry, Ruka-pyon! She came to this party! I just met her here and gave her my present!" she said excitedly.

Upon hearing the information, Ruka's eyes lit up in hope. He couldn't hide his relief and excitement in his voice when he asked, "She's here?"

Mikan nodded excitedly. "I think she's still around here. Why don't you try walking around? Maybe you'll find her," she suggested, smiling even brighter.

Ruka couldn't help but feel pleasure and nervous building inside him when he knew his girlfriend attended the party. He quickly excused himself from his friends and walked away, looking for his lover. He didn't know where to go, just wandering around, inwardly hoping he would catch a glimpse of hers, under the spotlight or in the shadow.

His eyes gazed around. He still didn't see her among the river of students and teachers there. Somehow, a small anxiety started to appear inside his heart. A few questions appeared in his head as he looked around nervously. Were they not destined to meet again? Were they not allowed to spend the night together and say goodbye to each other for the last time? Could it be the end of their relationship?

"You look like you'll be dead in no time if you couldn't find Piyo soon."

He was startled a bit when he felt something cold touching his nape. He abruptly turned to the suspect and was about to scold the person when his shock stopped him from doing so after knowing who it was.

A girl with raven hair tied up into a small bun was standing in front of him. She looked breathtaking with the purple halter dress hugging her small body perfectly. A transparent purple shawl was hanging around her elbows and back. Her violet high heels, which had darker shade of purple butterflies as the ornament, completed her magnificent purplish appearance. A fluffy animal toy was in her hand. Her other hand was holding a can drink which he suspected she had placed on his nape before.

His lips tugged upward at the sight. "Actually, I'll be dead in no time if I couldn't find you."

Hotaru rolled her eyes at his statement and started to walk away from her previous spot, throwing the empty can to the trash can on her way. Not wanting to lose the chance, Ruka did a small jog to catch up with her. He slowed down when he was beside her and walked in the same pace with her. Glancing at her from the corner of his eye, he saw her staring forward emotionlessly.

"So…Where were you these few weeks?" he hesitantly asked.

"Everywhere I could be," she answered nonchalantly, her attention still wasn't at him.

"Oh…" Ruka looked at the ground, suddenly finding it more interesting than everything else at that place. He realized there was no snow covering the ground at all. The snow hadn't fallen down since the beginning of winter. He wondered if it would be raining snow tonight. If it happened, then it would be White Christmas Eve.

He cast a sneaky glance at her again. Her raven hair was tied into a small bun and a big purple butterfly ornament was resting on top of it. Her pale cheeks had a faint pink color on it. It might be because of the cold weather. He could see it from the white smoke which came out whenever she breathed.

Were his eyes deceiving him? His girlfriend was really gorgeous tonight, or it was because he hadn't seen her in a long time?

As they walked, Ruka wondered where they were going to. He looked up, and in a split moment his eyes widened upon seeing the sight in front of him. A familiar huge stage that he saw when he set his feet for the first time at that place was standing in its glorious appearance, with the colorful lightings and ornaments making it more bright and beautiful.

But his eyes didn't widen in amazement. Rather, it widened in horror as he remembered why he desperately searched for her before. 'Farewell speech at Christmas party,' he recalled, his feet unconsciously stopped midway. The raven-haired girl kept walking without hesitation, creating more space between them, leaving him behind.

Behind his closed lips, his teeth were gritting in anxiety. He couldn't decide which was better, to let her go or to take her away before she reached the stage. His eyes were staring distantly at her back figure. She was slipping away from his reach.

His legs moved unconsciously at the thought. He wasn't ready to let her go. Not yet.

He jogged to her, trying to catch her figure. When he was close enough to her, he stretched out his hand and reached for her hand, intertwining their fingers together. The hold was loose, but it was enough to stop her from moving further.

Hotaru turned her head a bit, glancing at him inquiringly. Ruka panted lightly, his cerulean eyes were staring straight into her violet one. All words he wanted to say were being poured into the gaze, but it seemed like none of them reached her. Her stare was still the same, confusion and question mixed inside them.

"Merry Christmas, my dear students!" the host of the party, Narumi, greeted cheerily into the mike. He wore Santa Claus costume, complete with the long white beard which was hanging beneath his chin. "Did you enjoy the party?"

'Yeah!' echoes from the students were heard. They shouted and nodded enthusiastically, especially the elementary students.

For a moment, Ruka's attention was on the hyper host. Suddenly, he felt something slipping off from his fingers. He quickly turned his head back to the raven-haired girl, only to find her walking away from him again. He stood in silence. His hand fell back to his side as he watched her figure leave him there.

_She will go._

'I know.'

_Why don't you chase her?_

'I can't.'

_And why is that?_

'I can't move my legs.'

_So you'll just watch her slowly slip away from your hand?_

Slipping away from him…to the place he couldn't reach…

He clenched his jaw at the thought. His stare was firm. Once again, he ran to her. The thought of letting her go without saying anything made him uncomfortable. He knew he would regret it one day if he did it. Might as well talk to her before he regretted it.

When she was within his reach, he stretched out his hand, and this time, he grabbed her hand, pulling her to the opposite direction from the stage. He didn't look back to know if she was with him, as long as his hand still clutched hers tightly.

They passed through the crowd, running out from the place where the party was held into the darkness of silent forest. He didn't know where they would go to. What he wanted was just a secluded place to talk.

Not long afterwards, they stopped under a random tree. He leaned his back on the trunk and caught his breath, gathering the air back to his lung after the escape. He noticed sweats started to form on his forehead and neck. Letting go off the raven-haired girl's hand, he brought his hand to his collar and loosened the white tie that started to choke him. His other hand still clutched Mikan's gift to his side securely.

"Well, what do you think you're doing, bunny boy?" Hotaru asked while crossing her arms in front of her. She had 'tell-me-what-you-want-before-I-leave-you-here' gaze with her.

"You're going to give farewell speech right?" Ruka panted.

Hotaru raised an eyebrow in wonder.

He swallowed and grew quiet for a moment before he continued, "You're going to…go away from the academy…right?"

A soft sigh escaped from her lips as she boringly asked, "What about it?"

He lifted his eyes to look at her. "Why didn't you tell us? At least me?"

"I don't see anything important to tell you about it," she spoke callously as she turned away and started to walk back to the party.

Bangs covered eyes, he said in a helplessly low voice, "…Am I…not important to you…? At all…?"

That sentence managed to stop her from walking further. Slowly, she turned back to face him. She sighed and approached him in slow pace while Ruka drowned in his own pessimistic thought. Her eyes softened as she saw the vulnerable boy in front of her.

Once she saw him like this was when he realized he wouldn't be able to win Mikan's heart. The brunette's heart was for the fire caster only. Both of them had known it a long time ago, far before the nullifier finally confessed to the raven-haired boy.

She lifted her hand and patted him on his shoulder. "I would have asked to break up if you're not important to me," she said softly.

Ruka lifted his head and gave her a weak smile. His hand reached for her hand that rested on his shoulder. Clutching it in his warm palm, he brought it to his lips and kissed it gently. His warm breath was tickling the back of her hand, sending shiver down her spine.

Then their eyes met. Hotaru could see an unreadable sparkle danced inside his cerulean orbs. Was it just her feeling or his face really closer than before?

No, it wasn't just her feeling. He indeed leaned his face towards her, closing the small space between them. She stared into his eyes longer and finally realized; the unreadable glint was desire. She knew but she couldn't move away. His nice cologne scent made her feel comfortable. She had been caught by him, his alluring gaze, his scent, his touch; all of him.

He moved closer. The distance between them was just a few millimeters again. Both of them initiatively closed their eyes, not wanting to spoil the moment. The animal-lover was nervous, but he couldn't back away. This would be their first kiss in their nine months length of relationship.

Night cold breeze blew passing them, but it didn't affect him. His lips finally touched her soft, warm, and…fluffy lips…?

He slowly opened his eyes and immediately jumped back when he saw a white fluffy animal in front of his face. The box in his hand dropped to the ground when his clutch on it loosened. "…What the hell?"

Behind the animal, the raven-haired girl chuckled. She pulled the animal back and caressed its feathery body. As he stared at the white mysterious animal longer, he realized it didn't make any move. Its beady eyes also didn't bat at all.

…A toy…?

"Not that easy, bunny boy," he heard Hotaru say. He shifted his gaze to her and found the corner of her lips tugging upward. "You still have a long way to go before that happens," she added slyly.

He groaned in annoyance. Tonight was the last day she was here, and she still didn't let him kiss her. "Even this is the last time I see you?" he whined.

One of her eyebrows rose. "Last time doesn't mean a kiss," she pointed out. "Besides, we will meet again, bunny boy." And with that, she turned away, leaving him with a mysterious smirk as she walked to the direction where the party was held.

Ruka sighed and shook his head at the unique side of hers. A sideways smile made its way onto his face as he watched the raven-haired girl's back figure walk away from him. He bent down and picked up Mikan's gift that he had dropped before, then he ran to the direction where Hotaru just walked into.

He stopped when he reached her and asked, "So, where did you get that…cute toy?" He was a bit annoyed because it had prevented him from kissing her. But maybe it's better than the Baka Gun. He was sure his girlfriend would use it to hit him if she didn't have the fluffy animal with her.

"Why don't you open the box? It's a gift from Mikan, right?" she said emotionlessly, not looking at him.

Ruka blinked then averted his gaze to the box in his hands. He ripped the white-red wrapper and opened the brown box beneath it. A submissive smile was formed on his lips as he saw the content.

It was the same fluffy white animal toy, with a blue ribbon around its neck.

-x-

"Damn! I forgot to set my alarm!"

Ruka ran through the corridor with his hands busy putting his blue jacket on. His hair was still messy because he had no time to brush it. There was another important thing to do that early morning.

He had forgotten what plan he had for that day, except changing his pajamas into shirt and pants before he went somewhere. He almost froze to death if it wasn't because of the sudden chilly air blew into his room from his opened window, reminding him that it was still winter.

When he approached his window to close it, he could saw the entire academy ground and buildings were covered by white color. As far as he remembered, it didn't rain snow when he came back to his dorm after the party was over. He had never expected it would rain snow in the middle of the night when all people were asleep. Maybe he had been too tired to realize the temperature got colder than before. He immediately fell asleep when his body landed on his queen-sized bed anyway.

But he had no time to stare at the view and admire it longer. He quickly took his scarf and jacket then ran out of his room. On the way to his destination, he cursed himself.

How could he forget? Today, his girlfriend would go from the academy. He remembered she told him she would go in the early morning. He had promised her he would come. But in the truth, he was late.

He lifted his right hand and looked at his watch. Another beautiful curse came out from his lips. He had been ten minutes late. This meant smaller chance to bid her farewell.

A white cold breath came out from his parted mouth and nose when he was running through the snowy ground. 'A bit more,' he encouraged himself, increasing his speed. He wouldn't lose his last chance to see her. It could be weeks, months, and maybe years before he could see her face again. He might be not as strong as Natsume who could jump from tree to tree and run in high speed to reach the place he wanted to go, but he could do and try with all his might. He might be a pretty guy, but that didn't mean he had no strength at all.

When he finally reached the gate, a few people he knew well were standing there. Mikan, Koko, Tsubasa, Misaki, and Sakurano were looking at the already closed gate. As he moved closer, he could see the brunette wiping off a small tear from the corner of her eye. Tsubasa stared down at her while patting her head, trying to calm her down.

'Am I late?' he thought anxiously as he approached them.

On cue, Koko turned to look at him. The mind reader smiled when he saw him finally making his appearance there. "Ruka!" he called while waving his hand. Mikan lifted her head up upon hearing the animal-lover's name and gave a smile when she saw him.

Ruka jogged a bit more and stopped when he was finally in front of them. He bent his body a bit and leaned his hands on his knees while busy catching his breath. "Am I…late…?" he asked, still breathless.

Koko rested his hand on the animal-pheromone alice user's shoulder. "You're late, buddy," he replied cheerily. "Everybody had gone to do their own business."

A pang of guilt and regret crept inside him. The hope he had been holding onto minutes ago had disappeared to nowhere, along with the excited feeling when he thought of his last meeting with her.

It was all over now.

The mind reader, who had read his mind, pitied him. Not because he was late to meet his girlfriend, but because of something else. He patted the animal-lover's shoulder and murmured, "Hang in there, poor boy. You'll be fine."

Without knowing what the meaning of his words, Ruka nodded. He had so much feeling mixed inside him right now, and no one of them was a happy one.

Finally, Mikan and the other excused themselves and went back to the dormitory. At first, the brunette insisted to stay with him after seeing him so frustrated, but Ruka convinced her that he was alright and just needed some time alone. She finally agreed with him and walked back to the dormitory, glancing at him as much as she could every time she moved two meters further.

When no one was in his sight, Ruka heaved a soft sigh and his expression turned sad. Truthfully, he wasn't alright. He was extremely sad with Hotaru's departure; plus, he couldn't see her for the last time. He looked up to the broad ground of academy. Snow was everywhere, but no one had been out to play snow-fight and admire the beautiful snowy view. Perhaps it was because they had entered winter holiday. Most of students would choose to lay on their warm bed than walking in the cold weather.

He let out another sigh and saw the white cold breath coming out from his lips. It might be better if he went back to the dormitory than wandering outside now. He could think of nothing to do anyway. If Hotaru was still there, he might be chasing her for taking his photos now, or laying on her bed while watching her work on her invention. He couldn't help but smile as he remembered the time he had spent with her all this time. He surely would miss it a lot.

"You're sighing a lot."

His body froze when he heard the voice. 'It couldn't be…?' He craned his head to the direction of the voice and his eyes immediately widened at what he saw.

A familiar raven-haired girl was leaning on the tree trunk. She was wearing a thick purple jacket and he could see blue jeans pants were covering her legs. A white scarf wrapped around her neck and a white ear muffler was on her head. Her expression never changed, still as emotionless as ever.

"Ho…Hotaru…?" he muttered unsurely.

The mentioned girl raised an eyebrow, staring at him in boredom. "What?"

Ruka blinked a few times then looked at the gate and her by turns. His head started to ache. "I…I thought you would go today…?" Yes, there was no way he had heard her wrong. He paid full attention to her when she told him she would go today in the early morning.

Hotaru shook her head and started to walk away from that place. Still wanting the answer for his question, the animal-lover quickly chased her. He needed to know what the heck had happened. "Hotaru! Wait!" he shouted as the lass slowed her pace and waited for him to catch up. When he had reached her, he immediately asked in confusion, "Could you explain to me why you're here instead in the car which should have been gone a few minutes ago?"

"Simple," she answered without looking at him. "The one who's going away is my brother."

"…What?" Ruka asked again, making sure he didn't hear her wrong.

"The one who's going away is my brother," she repeated casually. "A well-known hospital offered him to work at their place. He took the offer and you know what happened next."

Ruka rubbed his temple, trying to register the information he had just heard from her. "If I remember…" he murmured to himself, "…they did just mention Imai…" Then he frowned. "…Does that mean I mistook it…?"

She spared him a glance. "You concluded it too fast, bunny boy," she said mockingly. "You should learn to check it further before you spread it out."

"Wait. I don't spread it-"

"Kokoro."

"Koko read my mind!" he protested.

"Then you have to learn to keep your thoughts to yourself."

Ruka was at a loss for words. He opened his mouth to complain again, but then he closed it because he didn't know what to say. The raven-haired lass didn't say anything again after that, just walking in silence as the sun started to show itself in the white morning sky.

The blonde-haired boy then smiled. At least his girlfriend didn't go. He didn't realize he had missed her so much until he saw her leaning on the tree trunk minutes ago. He wanted to hug her badly, but he must restrain the idea since the raven-haired girl wouldn't let him do it. He might get a shot from her Baka Gun instead.

He moved his gaze down to the snowy ground. He could see her footprints on the snow. 'This isn't a dream,' he thought. 'An illusion wouldn't leave footprints.' His smile widened at this. The deafening silence engulfed them as they walked. The only sound could be heard was the muffled sound when they stepped on the snow.

"So…where have you been those three weeks before Christmas?" he broke the silence.

"In my new laboratory. Doing my projects," she answered simply.

"Oh…" was his response. "…Then, if it's not you who will go away, why did you act like one yesterday?"

"Because it's fun."

He stopped, staring at her back. "What?"

She stopped on her track too and turned to him. "It's fun to trick you once again, bunny boy," she said, smirking slyly.

Ruka had his mouth opened at her blunt statement. His girlfriend had tricked him. Again.

"And…" She shoved her hand into her jacket pocket and took out a thin square-shaped thing. "I think this will get sold out with high price." She turned the thing in between her index and middle finger.

An image when he kissed the fluffy toy last night was showed on it. It was taken from the side angle, and made him look like he was kissing an animal.

The pair of cerulean eyes stared at the picture longer, before he clenched his fists and his body trembled in anger.

"IMAI!!"

**And that's it! So…do you like it? Did you think I'll separate them for real? XD**

**I know it's not about Natsume and Mikan. But they already dominated most of stories in this sequel. So I think I would give this last sequel to Hotaru and Ruka. Yay for them! …Not?**

**Anyway, comments will be appreciated. Thanks to those who have followed A Miracle Night and its sequels until now. Happy 1st Anniversary to me! It's exactly my first year in FFN! And Merry Christmas**** and Happy advanced New Year ****to all of you! XD**


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